Ernest Mickens and his wife, Latonja, were energetic and athletic. Each week they ran several miles together, the family dog running alongside them. January 2010, while attempting to trim a tree, Ernest fell 30 feet to the…
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Ernest Mickens and his wife, Latonja, were energetic and athletic. Each week they ran several miles together, the family dog running alongside them. January 2010, while attempting to trim a tree, Ernest fell 30 feet to the…
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Ernest Mickens and his wife, Latonja, were energetic and athletic. Each week they ran several miles together, the family dog running alongside them. January 2010, while attempting to trim a tree, Ernest fell 30 feet to the…
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Carolyn Abeyta considers herself a "can do" girl. The physicians and staff at Regency Hospital of Central Georgia call her a miracle. Carolyn's story began with a simple fall at home. A few days after, she noticed she was…
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Carolyn Abeyta considers herself a "can do" girl. The physicians and staff at Regency Hospital of Central Georgia call her a miracle. Carolyn's story began with a simple fall at home. A few days after, she noticed she was…
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Patient Success Stories

Barbara Saunders

Regency Hospital-Northwest Indiana, Indiana

Barbara Saunders taught social studies to junior high students for 32 years and loved it. She was preparing lesson plans one January when she grew weak and her legs gave way. Barbara was taken to the hospital where she was diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis, a life threatening infection that initially presented as an abscess on her upper thigh. Barbara was admitted to ICU and treated with powerful antibiotics and extensive surgeries to remove infected tissue. She encountered many complications along the way including renal issues and allergic reactions to antibiotics. At one point, she was considered well enough to move to a skilled nursing facility, but worsened and returned to ICU with serious infections. She was eventually sent to Regency Hospital-Northwest Indiana. Debilitated and depressed, she needed wound care and close management of her medical issues. She says, "They didn't treat me like I was a job. They treated me like family, with respect, compassion and love." Barbara was discharged from Select to a rehabilitation facility. She had been hospitalized through three seasons (winter, spring and summer) when she finally returned home. Barbara retired from teaching, but is independent and on the move. "The best day was when I got my wheels and drove again," she says. "Nobody at Regency ever told me I wasn't going to get well, so I expected it."